Due to the upheavals in the energy market, electricity producers are currently selling the electricity consumed in Austrian households for EUR 4.4 billion above production costs. The Austrian online rate comparison portal durchblicker.at has now calculated this and announced it on Friday. The trend would increase.
“As things stand, in 2023 that will be 2.7 billion euros in the first quarter alone,” said Stefan Spiegelhofer, energy expert at durchblicker.at. Annual households in Austria consume about 18 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity. About 85 percent of this comes from renewable energy sources.
In the Austrian electricity mix, the largest random gains occur in hydropower, wind energy and biomass. The reason for this is the current EU electricity pricing. The electricity price is linked to the gas price, and the latter has been going through the roof for some time now.
“The problem is that the lid is missing”
“Of course it is also important now, when electricity is scarce, that more money is available to expand electricity production and storage capacity,” said Spiegelhofer. “But the problem is the lack of a cap when markets panic and prices explode. Households are now paying for that.”
The brake on electricity prices for Austria announced this week will “just not be enough. A fundamental change in the system is now needed,” says Spiegelhofer.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
